{"id":59973,"date":"2020-04-27T14:59:31","date_gmt":"2020-04-27T18:59:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mileniostadium.com\/?p=59973"},"modified":"2020-04-27T14:59:31","modified_gmt":"2020-04-27T18:59:31","slug":"hospital-hotline-lends-support-to-long-term-care-homes-during-covid-19","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mileniostadium.com\/local\/gta\/hospital-hotline-lends-support-to-long-term-care-homes-during-covid-19\/","title":{"rendered":"Hospital hotline lends support to long-term care homes during COVID-19"},"content":{"rendered":"
A 24-hour hotline for long-term care homes launched before the pandemic is proving to be extra valuable now that many are dealing with COVID-19.<\/p>\n
Known as LTC+, the hotline run by Women’s College Hospital provides the facilities with telephone access to immediate medical assistance. It’s a partnership involving\u00a0many hospitals, community agencies and long-term care homes across Toronto.<\/p>\n Dr. Danielle Martin, chief medical executive at Women’s College Hospital in\u00a0Toronto, says the hotline connects staff at long-term care homes to doctors and nurses and has been designed to keep seniors from being transferred to hospital emergency rooms unnecessarily.<\/p>\n Seniors need to be careful during the pandemic and decreasing the number of\u00a0transfers helps to protect their health and prevent the spread of the virus, the hospital said on its website.<\/p>\n The hotline is working, Martin said.<\/p>\n Since it was launched earlier this year, the hospital estimates that 50 per cent of calls to the LTC+ have prevented a transfer of a senior to an emergency department, thereby cutting down on unnecessary hospital visits.<\/p>\n